All Sulk & No Play Makes Sasuke a Dull Little Boy
by KariHina94
Summary: Sakura finally gets the courage to talk to Sasuke Uchiha. He is the most popular boy at the ninja academy and yet, he always seems so alone.


_**All Sulk and No Play Makes Sasuke a Dull Little Boy  
**__**by Karishma D. Kumar **_

Sasuke sat alone against the bark of Sakura tree and stared down at the green grass whilst the other students in the academy played gleefully.

Sakura caught a glimpse of him and felt a little sad and concerned. All the girls liked him and he was the most popular guy at the academy despite being an indifferent enigma.

Why wouldn't he have any friends? It made no sense.

Clever as she was, Sakura knew her best friend, Ino was in her family's flower shop and she also knew that he was her new crush.

It was time, she thought, to initiate, and to take action!

Confidence began to build up inside as the pink-haired kunoichi approached Sasuke. When she was a few feet away, the confidence had become lost and in its place was hesitation.

Sasuke remained unmoving, yet he caught the scent of strawberries and vanilla and glanced to his left to see a pair of scruffy blue sandals.

'_Someone else who has come to both me…great," _he thought bitterly.

Sakura was about to kneel down when she felt uneasy and gulped with doubt. She wondered if she should turn back now. Should she continue with what she was about to do?

She slowly descended to the ground and sat down on the grass beside him and hugged her knees timidly.

Well, she made is so far, she thought. What could she say? He seemed to be lost in his own dark little world. She had not a clue of where to begin. She wanted him to open up to her, but she didn't know how to get him to.

A guy like him should be playing like the other classmates in the distance. They jumped crazily and played boisterously; it seemed like they were having loads of fun. Why should he be left out? He was the most popular guy at the academy; kids admired him.

At last, Sakura mustered the courage to speak. "Hey, um, why are you sitting here all alone?"

He didn't answer.

"It's–it's Sasuke, right?"

"In case you haven't noted yet…and it's obvious you wouldn't, I like to be _**ALONE**_…"

"Why?" she questioned, disregarding the insult.

"Because…because it doesn't matter. No one cares anyways," he said, a little unsure of himself.

"Well…I do…" Sakura mumbled shyly.

Sasuke tilted his head to look up at Sakura, his deep onyx eyes meeting sinking into her big luminous emerald orbs. Her lips were a pale, cherry blossom pink and her alabaster skin was fair and her shoulder-length cotton-candy hair glistened marvelously in the sunlight. The little black bow that adorned her head blew along with her hair in the gentle breeze.

Silence overcame the moment as they stared awkwardly at each other in surprise, not knowing what to do.

Sasuke broke the gaze and looked down at the earth, letting his raven hair fall down to cover his face slightly and laced his fingers.

"No, you don't. What do you care? I've never seen you in my life, so now, if you don't mind, don't you have something better to do?" he asked curtly.

Sakura didn't reply and the Uchiha prodigy expected the coy girl to get up and walk away. That's what he wanted: to be left alone.

"It must really hurt…I heard about what happened to your clan…" she whispered empathetically.

"Don't trust anyone, and don't believe what anyone else says…I've learned that alright!" Sasuke exploded, gritting his teeth and clenching his jaw.

Sasuke was enraged and Sakura couldn't think of anything to say.

"What _really_ happened, then?" she asked cautiously.

"Oh, nothing, really, just my entire clan was murdered."

"Oh, that's awful. I'm so sorry."

"I don't need your sympathy. Save it for the weak," he retorted coldly.

Sakura was patient and they were both quiet. Abruptly she broke the silence as she picked up a small, delicate flower that surrounded the tree that they sat under. It was a deep violet with a small yellow bud, and it reminded her of Ino.

"You know, life…is sorta…like a flower. If you take care of it, it will flourish and grow, just like how life goes on…" she said, as she twirled the flower between her small fingers.

Sasuke glanced up curiously to see her bright green eyes gazing out into the azure blue sky, her mind lost in indistinct thoughts.

"You wouldn't understand…" Sasuke remarked defiantly. He was one stubborn guy.

"Okay, fine…maybe I don't, but it's pretty simple," Sakura conceded.

"What exactly do you mean by _simple_?"

"What I mean is that even though every situation or problem has its complications that make it unique from another, they're all basically the same."

To him, she made no sense.

"Never mind," muttered.

"So if you understand what I just said, why don't you have any friends? Why do you always look so sad and lonely?"

"Because…" he said simply and left it at that.

"No," Sakura insisted, "Why?"

He looked at her sternly.

"I want to know." Sakura persisted.

"What is wrong with you? Must you be so inquisitive?" Sasuke asked, his eyebrows furrowing.

"That's just how I am, I guess." Sakura smiled and shrugged.

"Ok, then. Since you have to be _so_ obstinate and you're gonna keep on bugging me, why don't _you _by my _"friend"_?

Delight filled Sakura's eyes and her wide cherry smile instantly brightened the atmosphere.

"Oh, Sasuke-kun!"

Right at that moment, she could hear Ino's voice calling her name.

Hastily, Sakura whispered, "Ok, I'm Sakura and _now_ we're friends. Deal?"

"Yeah, sure…"

Sakura hugged him tightly in that moment and ran off in the distance quietly murmuring, "Bye!" and blushing, splashing rose onto her cheeks.

Sasuke felt a slight blush burn his cheeks and he smiled, for the first time, in a long time….

^_^ - (March 29th, 2008)


End file.
